For author Shelley Noble, it's a shore thing

I get the impression from this guest post that Shelley Noble, author of Beach Colors and the new, two-story Holidays at Crescent Cove, is a bit enamored of "the shore." She explains (and now I desperately want a trip to the beach) …

Shelley: A few of my favorite things:

• The shore
• Christmas at the shore
• Antique carousels (especially when they're at the shore)
• Actually just about everything if it's at the shore

I love the shore, so I feel really lucky that I get to set my books at shores I know and love. And there's all that research that must be done.

But don't imagine me slathered in spf 15, lying on a chaise with a tall frosty glass of something and reading the latest best seller. I sometimes do that, but what I also love is the other shore, the fall shore, the winter shore, the spring shore. Each season brings something different, a new inspiration.

How the shadows drift across the sand when a cloud passes overhead.

The color and energy of the waves right before a storm.

Daybreak over the water spreading into light.

Just so you'll know I'm really doing research, here's a passage from Beach Colors:

The sky had turned from blue to mauve and the sun sat like a fiery, fat beach ball on the horizon. The crabbers were gone. The family gathered up towels and their cooler and trudged up the beach toward home.

A solitary gull strutted near the water's edge, his bill jack-hammering the sand in search of food. A wave rolled in; he swooped into the sky and was swallowed by the dusk.

But it's important not only for its physical description but how it affects your emotions.

The all-embracing motherhood of the ocean.

The hope of a future in the rolling waves.

The camaraderie of friends.

From Beach Colors:

She knew exactly when to look up. The perfect moment for that first full view. The blues of the water reaching up to the sky. The white sand stretching to each side in a graceful curve, like a smile.

When she was a kid, she would throw her arms open to the sea, let it take her troubles away. No matter how sad or angry or hurt she'd been, the waves could wash the feeling away. Could make her problems seem not so bad.

Which brings us to Christmas.

No surprise that I chose the shore for my Christmas e-novellas.

Why is the shore a perfect Christmas setting? There's rarely a lot of snow, but there is all that sand, white and drifting. And you don't have to shovel it. (Though these days in New Jersey we're doing plenty of that, too.)

New Jerseyites have a special affinity with the shore. They even made a television show about it, though there's a lot more to see and do. That's why it's so important to build it back, because it's more than a frosty glass, a perfect tan, condos with a view, or hot dogs on the boardwalk. It's a symbol of what's strong and good in our lives. It's a promise of the ability to rise like a phoenix whether from external storms or emotional ones. The shore connects us, makes us all neighbors. Is there any wonder that my characters love their particular shore, especially during the holidays?

From A Crescent Cove Christmas:

Margaux headed to the hallway and David came to stand beside Bri at the window. A minute later, they saw Margaux shrugging into a jacket as she hurried across the beach.

She reached Nick and he looked up. They stood looking at each other for what seemed like an eternity to Bri. Then he took Margaux in his arms and held her.

Bri blinked furiously. "That means everything is okay, right?"

That's just one of the many reasons why I love the shore. And the best reason for writing about it. Because somehow it says, "Everything will be OK."

Happy holidays, everyone!

To find out more about Shelley and her books, you can visit her website, ShelleyNoble.com.